


By Any Other Name

by badskippy



Series: Bagginshield One-Offs [20]
Category: The Hobbit (Jackson Movies), The Hobbit - All Media Types, The Hobbit - J. R. R. Tolkien
Genre: Angst and Feels, Light Angst, M/M, tales of family, tales of names
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-25
Updated: 2017-09-25
Packaged: 2019-01-05 03:14:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,931
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12181824
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/badskippy/pseuds/badskippy
Summary: Bilbo wonders just how did Fili and Kili get to be called ... Fili and Kili?!Thorin has an answer to that ... but he'll need some wine and spin a good tale.





	By Any Other Name

**Author's Note:**

  * For [The_Archivist](https://archiveofourown.org/users/The_Archivist/gifts).



> this story came out of a comment stream that i had with a reader ... i had a headcanon for Dwarrow names and thought I would use that as a basis for a story ... and this is that story.

* * *

 

 

            It was a peaceful night for the King Under-the-Mountain and his consort. The fire crackled in the hearth, while from the corner, at his desk, Thorin’s quill lightly scratched across the parchment of a missive he was writing.   Periodically, and predictably, the scrape of a page on a page was heard as Bilbo read steadily in corner of the settee, facing the hearth. There was also the occasional clink of metal on wood as either Thorin or Bilbo would lift their cup and take a drink, only to place it down beside them again.

            No words pierced the tranquil setting; no words were needed. Like so many nights since they’d met, Thorin and Bilbo did not require conversation to enjoy the presence of the other. In fact, their communication was often entirely silent, even when it spoke volumes.   If Thorin wrote at a furious pace, it was either urgent business or he was angry or both – Bilbo knew then to hum some soothing tune or make herbal teas for his king, so that Thorin would not end up in bed exhausted in spirit. If Bilbo set his drink down a little heavier than usual, it usually meant he was tired but unwilling to put his reading down – on those nights, Thorin would instinctively, use affection to guide Bilbo to bed; it worked every time. And at no time were these clues and indications discusses and often they were unknown consciously; they both just knew what the other needed, wanted or desired.

            But tonight, was usual. There was nothing pressing or upsetting; Thorin wrote of the day, Bilbo read for pleasure. All was right and peaceful.

            Yet, while the night was quiet, Bilbo’s mind was not.

            Bilbo suddenly closed his book. “Thorin ...”

            Thorin hummed out a reply; it was taken as a _‘Yes?’_ even in his distraction.

“Why are Fili and Kili ... named ... Fili and Kili?”

            Thorin took a breath to answer, then coughed; he was no longer distracted. “What?!”

            “I said, why are ...”

            “I heard you,” Thorin said, turning in his desk chair and giving Bilbo his complete attention. “I just don’t understand your question.”

            Bilbo huffed. “I mean ... why do they have ... _those_ names?”

            Thorin scowled a little. “Those are their names! Why is a ... _stone_ called a stone ... or a ... _mountain_ a mountain ... or ... or a ... _rose_ a rose?”

            Bilbo rolled his eyes. “You’re not getting my point.”

            “Clearly,” Thorin added dryly.

            “I’m just curious as to why their names end in ‘LI’ while the other Durins end in ‘IN!’”

            “Oh, I see.”

            “And for that matter ... why didn’t your Grandfather, of all people, have an ‘IN’ at the end of his name? Or Dori, Nori, and Ori end in ‘RI’ when they claim to have had different fathers and yet, someone mentioned they were distantly related to the line of Durin?”

            Thorin nodded. “Their mother.”

            “What?”

            “It was their mother that was remotely connected to the line of Durin, not any one of their fathers.”

            “Okay, now I’m really confused!”

            Thorin chuckled but smiled. He lay his quill down on his desk, stood, picked up his cup and moved to the other side of the settee, turning so that he faced Bilbo. “I will try and explain, but ... I’m curious myself ... what has brought this on?”

            Bilbo shrugged a shoulder. “I’ve always wondered about the boys but I just chalked it up to their father or something. But on our journey I heard about Thror and the Ri brothers, and Dwarrow names, and ... well ... I just figured at some point I would ask, but it never really came up and it wasn’t important in regards to our friendships—”

            “So why ask now?”

            Bilbo licked his lips and shrugged again. “It was the letter from Drogo that got me thinking about it.”

            Thorin nodded. Bilbo had received a letter from his close cousin just a few days ago, announcing Drogo’s intention of asking Bilbo’s other cousin, Primula, on his mother’s side, to begin courting. “And in what way did it get you thinking about names?”

            “He was going on about baby names,” Bilbo said with a smirk as Thorin looked amused but perplexed. “He’s always been a big sop, so I’m not surprised he’s thinking about them before he’s even proposed yet!”

            Thorin laughed. “He’s planning ahead! He’d make a good Dwarf.”

            Bilbo laughed at that. “He was thinking about Brogo, and Brodo, and Frodo, and Frogo ... he even asked if I would mind if they named the baby after me.”

            “That’s quite the honor!   At least it would be in Dwarrow society.”

            Bilbo nodded. “In Hobbit’s too. But I’m already a scandal, so ... I’ll write back and dissuade him of that.”

            “That would be a shame. Are you sure you want to do that?”

            “Thanks to me, _Bilbo Baggins_ is a name that has done enough damage to the Baggins Family reputation, I don’t want to have a little boy saddled with my name and followed by the echo of my ... disgrace.”

            “I still think it’s a shame, but it’s your decision.”

            Bilbo looked resigned and they sat in silence for a few long seconds before Bilbo started again. “Anyway ... that’s what got me thinking of the names again.”

            Thorin nodded, reached for his cup to take a drink, and then placed it back on the table next to him to begin. “You are right in that my sister-sons do not conform to the usual naming traditions of the Line of Durin, but they do follow basic naming tradition. And bear in mind they are _only_ traditions ... not laws ... it would not be unseemly or scandalous for a Durin king to bear or bestow his offspring a name that didn’t end in ‘IN.’”

            Bilbo didn’t hide his surprise. “Truly?!”

            Thorin nodded. “As for Fili and Kili, as they are the sons of a _daughter_ of Durin, she had the choice of either giving them names according to The Line of Durin, or, as was the case, giving them names based on their father; Vili.”

            “Ah,” Bilbo nodded. “I thought it might be something like that.

            “Then again,” Thorin said, taking another quick swig of his drink. “She could have disregarded all tradition and named them anything she and Vili wanted ... after his father, or a friend, or ... made up their own. There is no steadfast rule.”

            “But ... as your heir, isn’t Fili required to choose an ... ‘IN’ name?”

            “No,” Thorin shook his head. “As I mentioned, while unusual, there is no law stating that he must bear a particular name to ascend the throne. He could change it when he takes the throne if he so chooses ... or keep his given name ... it matters not. And I know in the past, Fili mentioned he is not inclined to change it since he feels that would dishonor his father.”

            “That’s very good of him.”

            “He will most likely bestow names to _his children_ that are in line with Durin, or so he has mentioned as well.”

            “Oh! Well ... that’s rather ... splendid!”

            Thorin smiled. “As dictated by traditions ... when a male child is born, one takes the last two or three letters ... depending on personal choice ... and adds that to the end of the child’s name.”

            “Right ... like, Thra-in, Thor-in ... Frer-in ...”

            “Correct.”

            “But not the girls?”

            “One could, but, again, tradition is that with a female, she is more likely to named after her mother, and in that case, one used the first two letters of the mother’s name and adds that at the end of the baby’s name.”

            “OH! Is that the reason for Dori and—”

            “Yes. The ‘RI’ brother’s mother was named Rina. Now, Rina was the great-granddaughter of a famous, royal courtesan, known for your sharp mind as well as her beauty, and Rina inherited all that from her ancestor. She was a beauty and a rather ... _formidable_ woman; she had stated ... loudly and proudly ... that there would be no man she would submit to.”

            “Bully for her!”

            Thorin nodded. “When she came of age and refused all suitors, she still wanted to have children.”

            “Well, I must say that is one area where we Hobbits differ.”

            “Oh? You do not allow your female make their own families?”

            “It’s not _that_ , exactly ... it’s ... well ... it’s not seen as ... _wholly acceptable_ for a young lady to have a child out of wedlock.”

            “I see.” Thorin gave Bilbo a rather pointed look but he wore a soft smile. “You’re right then, we differ in that way. In Dwarrow culture, it’s not seen as unvirtuous for a Dwarrowdam to have children out of wedlock or even bare children from multiple partners. Children are seen as gifts and it matters not of the circumstances surrounding their birth. Unless of course, it was forced upon the woman.”

            “Forced?!” Bilbo gave a little shutter “What a horrid concept!”

            Thorin raised an eyebrow to that. “Apparently Hobbits are ignorant of such atrocities.”

            “I ... I don’t know of a single incident where a woman has had such a thing forced on her!”

            “As I said ... your people know not of such things. And I am not unhappy that it should be so. No one should be defiled in such a way.”

            “No.”

            They sat quietly for a few long seconds before Thorin started again. “Anyway ... Rina ... she followed her own path and as such, followed the tradition of naming her sons after herself.”

            “Good for her.”

            “Now, as for my grandfather ...”

            “I take it there is a story there.”

            Thorin laughed. “There is ... and it is not so pleasant as Rina’s.”

            “Oh.” Bilbo bit his lip. “If you don’t want to talk about it ...”

            “No, no,” Thorin insisted, finishing his drink. “It’s not that. It’s just ... a little convoluted.”

            “All right.”

            Thorin took a breath. “My grandfather was not born of King Dain I.”

            That was surprising. “Really? Was he adopted?” Then Bilbo thought about that. “Do Dwarrow even adopt?”

            “It’s rare, but there are times children are adopted out to another family. In the case of my Grandfather, though, it isn’t too much unlike my own situation.”

            “Your situation?”

            Thorin nodded. “With Fili and Kili.”

            “Oh! So Thror was a sister-son of Dain?”

            “Yes and no.”

            “I’m confused.”

            Thorin chuckled. “Similar to Dis, Dain’s sister ... Enar ... married a man that Dain and the royal family were ... not overly pleased with.” When Bilbo gave Thorin quizzical look, Thorin clarified. “He was of common stock.”

            “Like Dis. So you didn’t care for Fili and Kili’s father?”

            Thorin sighed. “My issue with Vili was less that he was of common birth and more ...”

            Bilbo giggled. “You didn’t like the idea of _any man_ marrying your precious, baby sister. Right?” Thorin, choose not to reply, turned a little red and looked anywhere but at Bilbo; that only made Bilbo laugh out right. “You’re such a prat!” Bilbo said teasingly.

            “Yes, well ... it was worse for Princess Enar. King Dain and the royal family made no secret of their disapproval, even after the marriage contract was signed and their first born brought into the world.”

            “That’s terrible!”

            “I won’t argue with that. Not even I held such a grudge with Vili, as minor as it was, for that long.” Thorin sighed in his thought and shook his head. “The princess, however, was unmoved and also made known her displeasure with her family. The council continued to put pressure on the royal couple, as did her parents and brother, Dain, who had not yet become king at the time of her marriage. Her husband, Bror, was dutiful to his wife and from all account attempted many times to make peace for her sake, and those of his children, with her family. However, it wasn’t until some years later, after the birth of their third child and son, Gror, that a terrible event happened to bring about a change.”

            Thorin paused and rose to refill his cup. But Bilbo was on tender-hooks. “But what happened?!   How do you mean it was terrible?!   In what way?!”

            Thorin smiled as he poured himself more wine. “Do you want some?” he asked, holding up the bottle.

            “Thorin!”

            Thorin chuckled. “You _are_ impatient.”

            “You _cannot_ start a story like that and then expect a Hobbit to just ... _wait_ for you get on with it!”

            “Oh, my,” Thorin said, amused and feigning ignorance. “I had no idea.”

            “THORIN!”

            Thorin smiled but returned to the settee and settled in to start the story again. “As I mentioned, things between the royal family and the family of Princess Enar and her warrior, Bror, where not good. Still the princess would not budge and she remained defiant. Even after the old king, her father, Nain II, passed on and she had not been included in the royal proceedings, did she change her mind. But shortly after the birth of her third born, Gror, when the frostiness had worn her down, had she decided she needed some freedom. Oh, not that she wanted to leave her husband or that she did not love her children, but she wanted to breath without the overwhelming oppression she faced at home. Despite the warnings of danger, however, she set off alone with only a few hand-picked Dwarrowdams, good friends, from the royal guards as her company.” Thorin took a deep breath and slowly released it. “Not two weeks out, word of Enar’s death reached the kingdom.”

            Bilbo gasped.

            Thorin nodded. “Of her well-picked guards, only one returned. She told of a surprise attack by a band of Orcs and, although not huge, this band overwhelmed the Princess’ company and in the process, killed the princess and all the others. Shortly after her tale was told, the surviving guard succumb to her own injuries and died.

            “Naturally, the royal family blamed each other. Enar’s mother, the Dowager Queen, blamed her son, King Dain. The King pointed out that the old queen and his father, who had been on the throne at the time of the marriage, had been the first ones to object and that the Dowager had continued to do so. Even the council had been blamed for not supporting the Princess and it was revealed at that time that the council had been slowly defunding the young, royal couple in an effort to put pressure on them. But in the end, they all admitted that it was combination of their actions and they had to accept the responsibility.”

            “You’re damn right!”

            “But there was a worse problem to come.”

            “How could it be worse?”

            “While rare, it is not unheard of for Dwarrow, like Elves, to fade when their loved one passes.”

            “Oh, no. Don’t tell me that Bror ...”

            “He could not go on with Enar and ... despite his wife’s head-strong nature and her own declaration to go alone ... he blamed himself for not being there to protect her. By the time the royal family saw that they were wrong, Bror had faded beyond hope of recovery and he soon passed on to be with Enar.”

            They sat quietly, both lost to their thoughts, and once again only the crackle of the fire filled the room with sound. Both thought of poor Enar and Bror and could not help but compare to their own struggle for acceptance, but they each admitted, if internally, that it had not been near as devastating as what the ill-fated coupled had ever faced.

            “Naturally,” Thorin said, after taking a deep drink of his wine. “Dain and the royals took in my young grandfather and his two brothers.”

            “As they should have done long before!”

            “I won’t argue that,” Thorin agreed. “And like ... like me ...” Thorin cracked a small smile, “Dain and I share common traits.”

            Bilbo only took a few long moments to get it. “Ah ... may I assume that he ... perhaps ... had a male companion?”

            Thorin smiled at that. “He did indeed.”

            “Was he as charming as a Hobbit?”

            “You should already know my opinion of _that_.”

            Bilbo giggled. “So Dain made the boys his heirs.”

            “He adopted them outright,” Thorin clarified. “And while it would have been within his right to change their names, he left them be as a way to honor his sister and the man she so dearly loved.”

            “That’s nice.”

            “It was a short-lived nicety.”

            “What? Why? What happened?!”

            “Just a few years later, a Cold Drake from the North set upon the kingdom and in the defensive battle, King Dain and the middle son, Fror, were killed.”

            Bilbo shook his head. “All that wasted time and it still came to tragedy.”

            “In the end, Thror came to the throne, and when he married, he named his son, Thrain, renewing the ‘IN’ family name.”

            “What happened to Gror?”

            “While he had no argument with his brother, the Drake attack had been too much for many and Gror led a small population Eastward, settling in the Iron Hills, becoming Lord Gror of The Iron Hills. He had a son, Nain, and Nain is the father of the current owner of title—”

            “Dain Ironfoot, Lord of The Iron Hills.”

            “He’d love to hear you say that.”

            Bilbo laughed. “After hearing this tale, remind me to be nicer to your cousin.”

            “I shall do that,” Thorin said, giving his love a quick kiss and a chuckle. “So, now you know the story and traditions of naming ...”

            “I do indeed.”

            “And as I said, like a rose ...”

            “A name matters not. Regardless of what it was called, the rose would still be lovely and smell just a sweet if it were named something else.”

 

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> for those who do not know ... the title of this fic is from Shakespeare ... Romeo and Juliet ... Act 2, Scene 2 ... the balcony scene ... juliet is lamenting that romeo, her love, has the name of her family's enemy ... and she muses, to herself (although she is overheard), just what is in a name ...
> 
> What's in a name? that which we call a rose  
> By any other name would smell as sweet;  
> So Romeo would, were he not Romeo call'd,  
> Retain that dear perfection which he owes  
> Without that title. Romeo, doff thy name,  
> And for that name which is no part of thee  
> Take all myself.


End file.
